FEMA Takes 200,000 SF for Regional Sandy HQ

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has agreed to a short-term lease to occupy 200,000 square feet at Forest Hills Tower, a property owned by Muss Development LLC. The deal includes options for short-term lease extensions.

The Tower's location played a key role in the deal, with its convenient access to all five New York City boroughs in addition to Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester County, New Jersey and Connecticut. The lease deal reflects FEMA's urgency to create a centrally located base of operations as a result of Superstorm Sandy that hit the area.

The organization will occupy ten floors for at least three months, utilizing the space for administrative offices. There will be no access to the general public at this location. FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made.

Forest Hills Tower is located at 118-35 Queens Blvd. in Forest Hills, NY. Muss Development LLC constructed the 16-story, 310,000-square-foot, class A office building in 1983. It is located in the Northeast Queens submarket.

Ken Siegel of Jones Lang LaSalle represented Muss Development in the deal. Mark Greenspan of CBRE represented the United States General Services Administration (GSA), which acted on behalf of FEMA.